Lafayette

Within a month of each other, two downtown Lafayette farm-to-table restaurants have announced they’re closing for good.

But experts and chefs alike warn against making too much of the coincidence.

Restauration, a downtown Lafayette restaurant that opened in 2015, was a dream years in the making for owner and chef Kirsten Serrano. She and her husband, Paco, already had a steady business running La Scala on the courthouse square, but Kirsten wanted to try something new: A farm-to-tale concept that used only local, whole foods and could cater to people with food allergies.

People have been drinking—and smoking—inside Lafayette’s Knickerbocker Saloon for almost two centuries. But earlier this spring, the historic bar decided to go smoke-free. However, the transition requires more than posting a “no smoking” sign on the door.

Knickerbocker owner Jeff Hamann says most people just don’t expect or tolerate smoking in public anymore.

And smoking rates have, for the most part, been decreasing in Indiana, dropping 2.5 percent between 2011 and 2014.

Lafayette Mayor Tony Roswarski talks to WBAA's Sarah Fentem about protestors who are calling for the mayors of Greater Lafayette to sign a petition to federal congress asking them to take no action barring Syrian resettlement. Would he sign such a petition?

Roswarski also turns his attention to one listener's question about armed robberies in the city and how trash cans can generate revenue for Lafayette.

The Lafayette Police Department is hoping new initiatives to increase visibility and effectiveness in the community will help crack down on an increase in drug-related crime.

Mayor Tony Roswarski says the amount of drug-related crime has increased along with the statewide surge in heroin and methamphetamine use. As the police pointed out Thursday, hardly anyone robs a convenience store or commits fraud against their friends family in order to buy a family dinner.

The City of Lafayette has been struggling to reopen the John T. Myers pedestrian bridge for the last two months, but has been thwarted by uncooperative weather, structural issues and delivery problems.

Now, it can add sub-par workmanship to that list. Sloppily-made railings for the bridge arrived two weeks ago, and it was immediately apparent they couldn’t be installed until they were repaired, pushing the opening date to mid-October at the earliest.